The House of Delegates gave final approval Wednesday evening to a bill that would create a Maryland Reparations Commission, sending the measure to the governor for his signature.
THE BROOKS BLACKBOARD: Race, Politics & Social Change
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Thursday, April 3, 2025
House rejects GOP amendments, gives final approval to bill creating Reparations Commission
Friday, March 28, 2025
Measure that amends Florida’s compensation law for the wrongfully incarcerated passes Senate
By Mitch Perry
A bill that would make it much easier for individuals wrongfully incarcerated to receive compensation has cleared the Florida Senate, and needs just one final vote in the House before going to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk.
Basic Reforms to New York’s Legal Code Are At Risk as Democrats Lurch Rightward
By Schuyler Mitchell
A push to claw back a process-oriented change in New York’s criminal legal code shows just how readily Democrats will capitulate to carceral demands in 2025.
Thursday, March 27, 2025
Here Are the Texted War Plans That Hegseth Said 'Nobody Was Texting' on Signal
By Jon Queally
In response to U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth claiming on live television earlier this week that "nobody was texting war plans," The Atlantic magazine on Wednesday morning published the "war plans" that were, in fact, shared on the private sector messaging app Signal by top members of President Donald Trump's national security team, including Hegseth and national security advisor Mike Waltz.
Wednesday, March 26, 2025
“I will wear my persona non grata as a badge of dignity”, said South African ambassador expelled by the US
By Pavin Kulkarni
Tuesday, March 25, 2025
Trump’s school choice push adds to momentum in statehouses
By Robbie Sequeira
More than a dozen states in the past two years have launched or expanded programs that allow families to use taxpayer dollars to send their students to private schools. Now, President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress want to supercharge those efforts.
Youngkin vetoes minimum wage hike, prescription affordability board bills
Friday, March 21, 2025
Mahmoud Khalil still detained in notorious Louisiana detention center as case is moved to New Jersey
After former Columbia University student and permanent U.S. resident Mahmoud Khalil was detained by federal immigration officials over his involvement in student-led protests last year — a move that shocked advocates for free speech and immigrants’ rights around the country — he was taken to Jena, a small town of 4,000 in north-central Louisiana and home to one of the country’s largest and most notorious immigration detention centers.
Sunday, March 16, 2025
THEY DESERVE A SECOND LOOK
words by charles brooks
UPDATE as of 3/16/25: The bill was ultimately advanced in the House for a final vote, which is expected to occur in the coming days before moving to the Senate
There’s an opportunity in 2025 for Maryland state lawmakers to address the state’s mass incarceration and sentencing policies with the Maryland Second Look Act.
The proposed measure creates a pathway for men and women who served twenty plus years in prison to petition the court to have a judge review their sentence for possible reduction. The proposed measure is sponsored by State Senator Charles E. Sydnor, III, and House Delegate Cheryl E. Pasteur. The proposal requires a comprehensive evaluation process to prove to the court they no longer pose a threat to society. The rigorous process allows the judge to measure their capacity to change, and as a result the proposed legislation cannot be viewed as a, “get out of jail free card”.
Thursday, March 13, 2025
Can they get a Second Look?
words by charles brooks
They’re asking for a second look.